A Square Deal
by Lord Agravane the Undead
Summary: Lucas, Dawn and Barry are going for a relaxing stroll in Amity Square with their Pokémon. What could possibly go wrong?
1. Chapter 1

**A Square Deal**

_By Lord Agravane the Undead_

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or any of the characters within.

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><p><em>Amity Square is a place where Trainers can stroll peacefully with their Pokemon<em>

"Awesome!" said Lucas, reading the words that were set over the East Gate of said Square. "We've been battling all morning so what could be nicer for our Pokemon than a relaxing walk?"

"A relaxing trip to the Day Care with their girlfriends?" Barry suggested.

"Shush", said Lucas. "Come on, let's go in".

Lucas, Dawn and Barry entered the East Gate and the receptionist greeted them and checked that they had small and cute Pokemon to walk with. Seeing Empoleon, Infernape and Torterra, she immediately granted them access. The teenagers thanked her and then went through the turnstile into the beautiful Square.

Amity Square was indeed lovely; with emerald lawns, woodlands of ornamental trees and limpid pools of water scattered here and there. There were a few other Trainers and their Pokemon about but otherwise, it was quite quiet and empty. Relaxing music played over hidden speakers to set the mood for tranquillity.

"Oh, this looks like it's gonna be great", said Dawn eagerly. She released Fern, her Infernape from his ball and the boys did the same. Pip (Lucas' Empoleon) waddled down to a large pool for a swim. Fern went off to explore some woodlands and Tortilla (Barry's Pokemon) checked out some of the old ruins.

"Um, well so much for them *walking* with us", said Lucas.

"Aw, it's OK Lucas, I bet they just wanna go off and explore, you know, because they are in a new places and it's all new and exciting for them", Barry explained. "I bet they'll come back and walk with us real soon, you just wait and see".

Lucas' grey eyes lit up at those immortal words.

"A bet. Did you say a bet?"

Barry grinned. Dawn cast both boys a warning glance.

"No", she said firmly, folding her arm across her chest. "NO bets. No, no, no and that word that starts in N and ends in O".

"I did", said Barry. "Bet you twenty Pokedollars they come back and walk with us in the next half hour".

"You're on", said Lucas. The lads shook hands and Dawn rolled her eyes.

"Come on, let's walk round and enjoy the scenery", she said, linking her arm through Lucas'. They set off again, with Lucas and Barry continuing to discuss the fine points of their bet.

"So, do all three of our Pokemon have to return to us in half an hour or just one of them?" Lucas asked.

"All three", said Barry. "Otherwise, that would make it too easy".

"Hm, I guess so", said Lucas. "But what if..." Not looking where he was going, Lucas walked smack into another trainer.

"Oops, I'm really sorry!" he gasped.

"Apology accepted", said a familiar monotone and Lucas stared in dismay at a familiar Team Galactic Boss.

"Cyrus! What are you doing here?" he exclaimed.

"Walking my Pokemon", said Cyrus, indicating towards a cute and innocent little Eevee next to him.

Lucas gazed at the Eevee nervously, his eyes moving up to meet Cyrus's commanders, who were also accompanying him. They looked as if they wanted to give Lucas a wedgie, for having the cheek to collide with their Boss.

"What are YOU doing here Lucas?" Saturn asked. "You don't have a Pokemon with you".

"Maybe he bumped into you on purpose, Boss", said Mars (before Lucas could speak). "Maybe he did it because he wants to join Team Galactic and he was trying to get your attention".

"I do NOT want to join Team Galactic", Lucas said patiently.

"Are you sure?" Cyrus enquired. "You'd made a good commander.

"Yes and you could have your own planet name too", said Jupiter.

"Yes, you could come after Saturn", said Cyrus. "Hm, let me think...what planet comes after Saturn?"

"NO!" Lucas shrieked and Barry and Dawn burst out laughing. "No WAY. You guys are mean!" He stamped his foot hard.

"Ooooh, temper tantrum!" Jupiter smirked.

"Oh, I like that!" Lucas huffed. "Who bites his sleeve if he has a tube of jellybeans and there are no blue ones in it, hm?" He looked directly at Cyrus.

"I like blue jellybeans", said Cyrus. "Or I would do if I felt emotions".

"And besides, that's a meltdown, not a tantrum", said Mars. "You were having a tantrum, Lucas because you're repressed!

"Repressed? From what?"

"From your desire to join Team Galactic".

"NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!" Lucas made a silly noise as Mars slid her arm through Cyrus' and Team Galactic strolled off. "Ooooh, I'm going to explode with rage!"

"Steady on mate", said Barry. "Don't explode before our bet is done. I want my twenty Pokedollars".


	2. Chapter 2

**2**

Dawn calmed Lucas down by kissing him and they set off again, heading in the opposite direction to Team Galactic. Lucas kept an eye out for their Pokemon but none of them could be seen. They were all off, having a ball on their own.

"Ha, five minutes have passed since we made our bet", said Barry, checking his watch. "Twenty five minutes closer to my Pokedollars".

"Shush Barry", said Lucas. "You haven't won yet!"

"No but I soon will do", Barry said smugly. "I think I'll spend my...hey! Is that a Rattata?"

Dawn and Lucas looked to see where Barry was pointing. Sure enough, a cute little purple Rattata was romping about near some Hydrangea bushes. A boy of about ten stood near him, cooing and fussing over him.

"How cute!" Dawn gushed.

"Hang on though, Rattata aren't allowed in Amity Square", said Lucas.

"But how did that kid get his in then?" Barry asked.

"I dunno but we'd better go warn him before one of the attendants sees and chucks him out", said Lucas.

Dawn and Barry agreed and the three of them went over to the boy. He looked up and them and grinned.

"Hello! Do any of you guys want to battle my Rattata?

"Um, our Pokemon have sort of wandered off at the moment", said Barry.

"Awww, that's a shame", said the boy. "I'm Youngster Joey, by the way. I'm on holiday from Johto!"

Lucas and his pals introduced themselves. Then Lucas shook his head sternly.

"Joey, you can't have a Rattata in here. They aren't allowed".

Joey pouted. "But...but my Rattata is in the top percentage of Rattata!"

"Yes but Joey..." Lucas tried to continue but Joey was giving him HUGE puppy eyes. Rattata came over to him and sniffed at his hand.

"Awww, hi little cutie", said Lucas and he bent down to pet the Rattata. "You're so sweet; I really don't know why you aren't allowed in here".

Rattata walked round Lucas, sniffing his legs and hands. His whiskers quivered and his nose woffled. He did indeed look adorable. Joey beamed and Dawn clasped her hands together.

Then without warning, Rattata bit Lucas on the butt, sinking his teeth in hard!

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Lucas yelled, running round and round as he tried to dislodge the Pokemon. "Owwwwwwwwww, call him off, Joey!" Barry roared with laughter, Dawn looked horrified and Joey gaped in shock.

"Uh, uh Rattata, that's bad!" Joey finally blurted out. "Let go of Lucas NOW".

Rattata finally dropped off, a big piece of Lucas' trouser material between his teeth. Barry fell onto the grass laughing and Dawn rushed over to Lucas.

"Oh no! Are you OK dear?" she exclaimed.

"I think I'll live", Lucas moaned, rubbing the bitten area.

"Naughty Rattata!" Joey scolded his Pokemon. "Butts are not food. Cheese is food. Cookies are food. Poffins are food. Butts are NOT!" Rattata gazed innocently at his trainer and began to groom his whiskers.

"Sorry Lucas mate", said Barry, getting to his feet and trying not to smirk. "You alright? I give you full permission to laugh as much as you want if a Pokemon ever bites my butt".

"It's cool, don't worry about it", said Lucas, trying to cover to hole in his trousers. Barry peeped behind him and began laughing again.

"Heheheh, you're wearing Pokeball briefs!"

"Barry..." Lucas sighed, as Dawn began to giggle too.

"Hahaha, Pokeball briefs! Bet you're glad you didn't wear the pair with Jigglypuff on", Barry exclaimed.

"You've got underwear with Jigglypuff on?" Dawn enquired.

"Oi, Joey, you owe me money for new trousers", said Lucas (desperately trying to change the subject).

"I'll pay you if you can beat Rattata in a Pokemon battle", Joey said gleefully.

"I can't! My Pokemon is AWOL at the moment", Lucas growled.

"Ohoooohoooo, sorry then", said Joey. "Can't pay up and oh! There's my Mom with ice cream". Joey waved towards a pretty lady in the distance.

"MOM! WE'RE HERE!" he screamed, nearly exploding Lucas' ears. "Gotta go, see you guys around". Joey and his Rattata raced off towards the lady, still yelling.

"Ugh!" Lucas groaned. "This relaxing walk is turning into a pain in the ass". (He could say ass once Joey was out of earshot).

"Literally!" Barry smirked.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes: I don't know how the warp caves work so I just made something up for the story.**

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><p><strong>3<strong>

"Ok, so let's find our Pokemon quickly", Lucas said. "I gotta fly home on Pip so I can change my trousers".

"No way", said Barry at once. "That's cheating...trying to make me lose the bet".

"It's not!" Lucas protested. "Joey's Rattata bit a dirty great hole in my trousers; I can't walk round like that! What if Team Galactic come back and see?"

"They'll almost wet themselves laughing?" Barry suggested.

"Except for Cyrus, who doesn't feel the emotion of laughter", Dawn added on.

"Is laughter an emotion?" Lucas asked. "Anyway, surely my accident is enough to call the bet off with?"

"Nope". Barry shook his head. "Bet still stands". Lucas pouted.

"Cheer up sweetie", said Dawn, giving Lucas a hug. "You may still win and then you'll get twenty Pokedollars off Barry".

"Hm, yeah, good point", said Lucas. Barry checked his watch.

"Ten minutes have passed so far", he announced. "That leaves only twenty before I win the bet".

"Shush Barry, you sound like Cyrus", Lucas grumbled. "Come on; let's go walk somewhere where there aren't many people. I don't want anybody to see the hole".

Lucas and the others set off once more. They decided to explore a wooded area, which was near to the old ruins. The ruins were mysterious caverns with strange powers; it was said that if you stepped into one, it would teleport you into a different cavern.

"Here, let's go in one of those caves and see where it brings us out?" Barry said eagerly.

"Alright then", said Lucas and Dawn agreed too. As the three friends approached a cave, they were suddenly started by a young man appearing in a nearby one. A young man with long green hair, tied back in a ponytail and wearing a baseball cap.

"That was quite fascinating", he remarked.

"Hello N", Dawn called to him. N glanced up and smiled and waved at her.

"Hi, Dawn. Hi Lucas and Barry", he said, strolling over to them. "Isn't it a beautiful day. I am on vacation in Sinnoh and today, I decided to enter Amity Square to see if it was a pleasant habitat for Pokemon".

"Um, yeah", said Lucas. "That's a good idea".

"It does certainly appear to be suitable", N continued. "But one thing that displeases me is the fact that, within the whole of the Sinnoh region, Amity Square is the only place where Pokemon are allowed to walk free of their Pokeballs".

"Uh", said Lucas, glancing at Dawn and then at Barry.

"I consider this to be a terrible injustice", N continued. "In Johto, Pokemon can walk free anywhere they wish. However, even there, the laws are terribly unkind because only one Pokemon is permitted to walk free at any time. I cannot bear the thought of so many Pokemon being confined to their Pokeballs".

"Yes, that does seem unfair", said Dawn. (Behind her, Barry pointed to his watch and snickered at Lucas).

"It is, extremely", said N, now pretty agitated. "I dream of a whole world where Pokemon are no longer imprisoned and can walk free among humans. "This is the one goal that I am working towards. I..."

N continued to talk and Barry smiled serenely as his watch ticked many seconds away. Lucas shuffled his feet, trying hard not to appear rude in front of N. He looked round, hoping to see any of their Pokemon approaching. Instead, he saw Cyrus and his commanders, walking their Eevee towards the ruins.

Suddenly, a splendid idea hit Lucas like a Bidoof falling onto his head. He waited for N to take a breath and then spoke quickly.

"N! Look over there! It's Cyrus", Lucas said.

"Cyrus?" said N, coming out of his monologue at last. "Do you mean Cyrus who also has autism and had a disfunctional childhood, like me? My older brother figure and mentor, Cyrus?"

"The very same one", said Lucas. "Why don't you go and talk to him, N?"

"Yeah, that'd be ace", N smiled. "OK, I'll catch you guys later. Bye!"

N then ran over to the Team Galactic guys, waving and calling out, "Cyrus, hi! It's me, N!"

Barry snorted with laughter. Dawn gazed at Lucas suspiciously.

"You did that on purpose".

"I did indeed", said Lucas sweetly. "Shall we enter a warp cave and see where we go?"

"HMM!" Dawn tried to look stern but she couldn't help chucking. "Alright then. It will be fun to teleport and see what it feels like".

"Yeah", Barry agreed. They went up to the nearest cave and stepped in through the yawning mouth. Inside, it was pretty dark and musty smelling.

"Wow, this must be how an Abra feels", Barry remarked.

"We haven't warped yet, duh!" said Lucas.

"Ok, well any minute now", said Barry, folding his arms.

Sure enough, the air suddenly began to quiver and the light faded from outside. The walls vanished and were replaced by a blurry nothingness. Even the ground disappeared and Dawn gasped and grabbed hold of Lucas.

"Woh, I'm not sure I like this!" Barry exclaimed. "I hope we come out quickly".

"Me too!" said Lucas, hugging Dawn back. They waited patiently for the inside of a (different) cave to reform. The nothingness swirled around them in an eerie manner.

"Come on cave, hurry up", Lucas whined.

Suddenly, a disembodied voice spoke out.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this is the receptionist of East Gate, Amity Square. We are sorry to report that our warp caves are suffering a temporary malfunction. Normal service will be resumed as soon as possible.

Lucas said a very, VERY naughty word.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes: I know that honey doesn't quite work the way it does in my story but the idea I had for it was funny, so I just had to add it in.**

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><p><strong>4<strong>

"Ten minutes left", said Barry, as he, Lucas and Dawn finally stepped out of a warp cave. "Ooh, I wonder what I can spend my twenty Pokebucks on."

"Stupid cave!" Lucas grumbled. "Five minutes we wasted, stuck in there".

"Hmm, where are we now?" said Dawn, gazing round at the new surroundings. They were in a wooded area with other ruins strew about, partially hidden with overgrown bushes and tall grass.

"It's the same cave we started in!" Lucas exclaimed. "We haven't teleported at all".

"How boring!" said Barry. "Shall we try another one?"

"No! We might end up stuck again and for even longer", said Lucas.

"Let's just explore on foot then", Dawn suggested. Lucas and Barry agreed and they set off again; Lucas keeping his eyes peeled for any sign of their Pokemon.

They walked across a smooth lawn and passed a marble fountain in the shape of a giant teapot, pouring tea into a cup. Next to it was a quaint little building with a sign outside, announcing _Gift Shop - Beautiful gifts for everyone_.

"Ooh, let's go in there", Dawn said eagerly. "I want to buy something".

"Awww, but we have to find our Pokemon", Lucas protested.

"Oh come on, I'll only be a minute", said Dawn, taking hold of Lucas' hand and leading him inside. Barry grinned in delight because he knew that Dawn's "minutes" when it came to shopping were more like "hours".

A little bell tinkled as Dawn pushed open the door and went through. Inside, the shop almost resembled a warp cave; being cool, dim and rather dusty. Hundreds of gifts lined the shelves, ranging from plush Pokemon to Teasmades. Dawns' eyes shone and Lucas held in a groan, as he knew they would be in the little shop for AGES.

Lucas' eyes roamed around the shop, looking for anything to distract him from viewing Barry's smug face. There were a load of weird machines in the one corner; Lucas suddenly had the horrible thought of Cyrus entering the shop, thinking he was interested and giving him a three hour monologue all about the machines. Lucas quickly looked away. There was the counter, with a sweet little old lady sitting behind it, knitting a plush Pichu. On the counter, were many jars of fresh honey.

A splendid idea suddenly came to Lucas.

"Lucas, that's not fair. That's cheating!" Barry whined as they left the gift shop, Lucas carrying a large jar of honey.

"It's not cheating", Lucas replied. "When we made the bet, you didn't say that I couldn't use honey to attract our Pokemon".

"Yeah cos I never thought of it".

"Well I did so tough cheese", Lucas grinned. Barry glared at him and followed him over to a tree. Lucas unscrewed the cap off the jar and tipped it up against the trunk, so that the sweet, sticky honey ran down the bark.

"You're cheating", Barry sulked. "And when Dawn comes out of that shop, she'll agree with me too".

"Yeah but Dawn will be in there for ages", said Lucas. He finished emptying the jar and then stepped back to admire his work. "Hehehe, now all I've gotta do is wait for our Pokemon to arrive".

Just the, there was a rustling sound from a nearby clump of trees. Lucas grinned but his smile quickly faded as he saw that it was just a Pachirisu.

"Oh no, I hope it doesn't eat all my honey", he said, as the little squirrel ran over.

Then another Pachirisu appeared; scurrying down a tree trunk and racing towards its friend. Then another and another and soon...many Pachirisu were gathered around the honey coated tree, licking the sweet food off with their tongues. Barry yelled with laughter and Lucas groaned.

"Stupid squirrels! I paid five Pokedollars for that honey!"

"So you're gonna be twenty five worse off in five minutes time then?" said Barry checking his watch.

"Aww, shush Barry" Lucas huffed, holding out a sticky honey covered hand so a baby Pachirisu could lick it.


	5. Chapter 5

**5**

Suddenly, a voice rang out over the loudspeakers.

"Ladies, gentlemen and Pokemon, this is the receptionist of East Gate, Amity Square. Unfortunately, our warp caves are still malfunctioning and we regret to say that we need to close Amity Square until this problem is rectified. Would all Pokemon please return to their trainers immediately. Then, would all Trainers please leave Amity Square in an orderly fashion. Thank you and we are sorry for this inconvenience".

Lucas and Barry gasped. There was a tinkling sound behind them and Dawn came out of the gift shop.

"Awww, we have to leave?" she said.

"It sounds like it", said Barry gloomily. "Just as we were having fun too".

"Never mind", Lucas said, taking hold of Dawn' hand. "They'll probably fix the warp caves in no time, then we can come back in".

"Yeah, I guess your right", said Dawn, brightening up again. "Oh and here come our Pokemon".

Sure enough, Pip, Fern and Tortilla came trotting over; having heard the message on the loudspeakers. Pip was quite wet from swimming and he flapped his wings, sending water flying everywhere. Tortilla was rather dusty and sneezed a couple of times while Fern just sighed and looked grumpy.

"Cheer up Fern, we'll come back when the warp caves are fixed", said Dawn, scratching her Infernape behind the ears.

"Yeah and we better get you home for a bath", Barry said to his Torterra. "Come on, let's get going".

The teenagers and their Pokemon headed towards the exit at the West Gate, which was the closer of the two. There were a few people queuing to leave and they waited patiently behind them. As the queue moved along, Lucas suddenly gasped.

"What's wrong baby?" Dawn asked him.

"I...we walked with our Pokemon, they came back to us!" Lucas exclaimed. "Dawn, what time is it?"

Dawn and Barry checked their watches. A groan from Barry was all Lucas needed to hear to tell him that he had won.

"Two minutes", he sighed, showing a jubilant Lucas his watch. "Two more minutes and the twenty Pokedollars would have been mine!"

"I did it!" Lucas yelled, startling everyone within earshot. "I won a bet AT LAST!"

"Awww, well done sweetie!" said Dawn, flinging her arms around Lucas and hugging him.

"Not fair", said Barry but he looked pretty good natured about it.

At last, Lucas and his pals reached the gate and they recalled their Pokemon back to their Balls. Then they said goodbye to the girl there and stepped through, leaving Amity Square behind.

"Ohhh, I won! I beat you, Barry", Lucas said gleefully.

"Show off!" Barry grinned. He took his wallet out of his pocket and gave Lucas two ten Pokedollar bills.

"Awesome, thanks dude", said Lucas. He couldn't stop smiling as he pocketed the money. "Oh, I'm so pleased. I feel like buying everybody drinks at the cafe".

"Really? That's kind of you, Lucas", said a voice behind him. Lucas whipped round and came face to face with Saturn and the rest of Team Galactic.

"Yes, we are very thirsty", said Mars. "I'll have a strawberry milkshake".

"And I'll have an iced tea", said Jupiter.

"And you can get me an ice cream float", said Saturn. He turned to Cyrus, who was deep in conversation with N. "What would you like, Boss?"

"I don't feel any emotion but if I have to choose a preference, then it will be a blue jellybean slushie", said Cyrus.

"And you, N?" Mars asked.

"Can I have a coffee which contains milk from a bottle with a gold top, brown sugar and can I also have cream and chocolate sprinkles on the top please?" N asked.

"I...I..." Lucas stammered.

"Oh yes and we found a gift shop and our Boss was really interested in these strange machines that they had inside", Jupiter continued. "Weren't you, Boss?"

"Yes", said Cyrus. "I will tell you all about them while we are in the cafe, Lucas".

"Come on Lucas, let's go", said Jupiter. She linked his one arm, Saturn linked the other and they all headed off towards the little cafe at the end of the street. Dawn tried (and failed) not to giggle and Barry yelled with laughter.

"Barry! I'm going to get you for this!" Lucas called as he was led away.

"Hahahahah, no you won't", Barry called after him. Lucas' cross expression vanished and he was smiling a little when he spoke again.

"Say Barry...is that a bet?"

**The End**


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